Assam train murder: Police release sketch of suspected killer

The Assam Police on Thursday released the sketch of a man who is suspected of killing a college girl inside an inter-city train. She was one of the two women found dead in less than 24 hours inside the washrooms of different trains.

On July 10, the body of Radha Kumari, 21, was found inside the washroom of the train at around 9.40 am. A traditional towel — called “gamusa” in Assam — was found around the victim’s neck. Prima facie probe and marks on the victims’ neck have led the police to suspect that she was strangulated.

Kumar, who was a student of Assam Agriculture University in Jorhat, was on her way to meet a relative in Golaghat. Her mother, Tara Devi, had reportedly seen her off at the station. A senior RPF officer in Sivasagar said, “Radha Kumari was killed in a span of 20-25 minutes. She had boarded the train at Sivasagar and we found the body at Simaluguri station — the running time between the two stations is 20 minutes. The incident took place in that gap. Prima facie, it appears she was strangulated; we found a gamusa around her neck.”

In the second murder case, Lalima Devi (48) was found dead in a washroom of Avadh Assam Express, which runs between Assam and Rajasthan.

Both the incidents have created a sensation in Assam. The body of Lalima Devi was discovered on Wednesday when Avadh Assam Express reached Mariani station in Jorhat district around 2.20 pm.

Meanwhile, Additional DGP R P Meena, who is supervising the special investigation team formed to probe Tuesday’s murder, said, “We are trying to establish whether there is any connection between the two cases. The second incident has just happened. We need to investigate before making any comments on similarity or connection.” The police are yet to get the postmortem reports.